Changes Coming To Ball State ID Cards

Contributed by:Gail L WernerPublished:Monday, 21 April 2014 10:00 AM

The technology used by the Office of the Registrar to produce Ball State campus ID cards has become dated and reached the end of its recommended production cycle. A new system installed the week of April 21 will change the look of the card as well as provide additional flexibility and efficiency. Production of the new cards will begin on Monday, April 28. The new cards will be printed in portrait style instead of the current landscape design and will carry a watermark of Beneficence.

Q: Will everyone be required to replace his or her ID card?A: No. As the new system is launched and new cards are produced, your old card will continue to perform as normal.

Q: The magnetic strip on the back of the current cards is used for a variety of functions by students, faculty, and employees. Will this change with the new cards?A. New cards will continue to use the magnetic strip technology, and functions such as swiping the card to read student ID numbers will not change. The current tracking format will be incorporated into the new cards.

Q. Student employees and select university employees use a time clock to log their hours into Kronos. How will this change with the new card?A. The current ID cards have a barcode number printed on a small sticker for use with Kronos. The new cards will have the barcode printed directly on the card, eliminating the need for sticker placement. The old cards will continue to function with Kronos, but if your existing card becomes unreadable, speak with your supervisor, who will contact the registrar's office.

Q. What if a student, employee, or faculty member who has a current ID card requests one of the new cards?A. Because old cards will continue to perform as normal, the $10 replacement fee for a lost or stolen card would also apply to general requests for one of the new cards. Replacement of worn, cracked, or misused cards will continue to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis and may not be subject to the fee. In these cases, all replacements would be with the new card.

Q. How many classifications will exist when the university switches to the new ID card?A. Four: student, employee, Burris/Academy, and guests/vendors. In the previous system, there were more than 30 classifications, and reducing the number to four will provide significant cost savings.